Corner guard



March 31, 1953 5, FR|EDMAN 2,633,252

CORNER GUARD Filed July 1, 1948 Patented Mar. 31 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CORNER GUARD Samuel Friedman, Brooklyn, N. Y. Application July 1, 1948, Serial No. 36,331

. 1 This invention relates to the construction of a corner guard for protecting corners of objects and for protecting individuals and other objectsfrom the corners of said first mentioned objects.

Objects having sharp, hard or irregular corners present a definite menace to the persons and objects near which they are positioned or moved. If an individual should pass too close to such a projecting corner, he may injure himself or rip his clothing by coming into unexpected contact therewith. If another inanimate object is moved past said corner, or if the object having the rough corner is moved past another object, damage often results. These facts are a matter of common experience and are of considerable significance in industrial installations where unfinished articles having rough corners are often moved with respect to finished articles, thus giving rise to the possibility of damage to the finished articles, and where the frequent passage of individuals often preoccupied with their tasks near objects having such rough corners results in injury to such individuals or irreparable damage to their clothing.

The problem involved has a corelative aspect in that it is often desired to protect the corners of finished products from undesired contact with other objects in their vicinity and against which they inadvertently may be brought into contact.

These problems are particularly acute in industrial plants where. rough edged or cornered slabs of steel, wood or the like are moved through the plant from one location, for example, the place where they are fabricated, to another location, for example, the place where they are to be finished or assembled. These slabs represent a definite hazard to the personnel and property in such plants not only while they are being moved from one position to another but also even while they are stationary, since personnel and objects are often moved with respect thereto.

It is the prime object of. the present invention to devise a corner guard which is removably securable on the corners of objects and which will either protect those corners from undesired engagement with other objects or protect personnel and objects from damage caused by said corners.

Yet another object of the present invention is to devise sucha corner guard which is of simple and inexpensive construction yet which is ex,- tremely. effective in the achievement of the above prime object;

A still further object of the present invention is to devise a corner guard structure which is particularly adapted for use with sheets or slabs of rough cornered material so as to minimize the peril which such material normally presents.

To the accomplishment ofthe foregoing objects and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, the present invention relates to a corner guard construction as defined in. the appended 4 Claims. (01. 21410.5) 1

2 claims, and as described in this specification, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a pile of sheets to which one embodiment of the corner guard of the present invention has been applied;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the corner guard shown in Fig, 1;

Fig. 3 is a top view thereof;

Fig. 4 is a side cross-sectional the line 44 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing another embodiment of the corner guard of the present invention;

Fig. 6 is a front view of the corner guard disclosed in Fig. 5; and

Fig. 7 is a side cross-sectional the line 1-1 of Fig. 6.

The corner guards of the present invention are here specifically illustrated as applied to a pile view taken along view taken along of superposed sheets or slabs 2, which may be of steel or wood, and which are mounted upon a truck 4 for transportation from one locality to another. The sheets or slabs 2 may, for example, be cut steel sheets having rough or ragged corners, such as may be cut in one part of a plant and then transportedto another part of the plant where they are further operated upon. If the pile of sheets 2 disclosed inv Figs. 1 through 5 be moved through a plant, its corners constitute definite safety hazards insofar as personnel are concerned and they also constitute sources of danger insofar as the property in the plant is concerned. s l

The corner guards of the present invention are specifically designed to eliminate, or at least to minimize, those hazards. The corner guard of Figs. 1 through 4 comprises a fiat top portion 6 which may be in the form ofv a plate of rigid ma- 2. A skirt Ill is secured to the top portion 6 and depends therefrom so as to encompass the corners of the slabs or sheet 2. In the form here specifically disclosed, the skirt I0 covers the edges of the top portion 6 which meet to define the corner 8, and end portions l2 of the skirt I0 extend-over the top surface of the top portion 6, and are secured thereto by any suitable means such as by an adhesive. The skirt [0 is formed of a relatively soft and preferably flexible material such as leather, thick cloth, or plastic, and by the construction described the corner guard, although its top portion 6 may be hard or rigid,

has external surfaces which'are soft and prefthat-the corner edges oftheguard be softenough to minimize or eliminate the hazard presented by the hard and rough corners of the sheets 2. Thus, if the top portion 6 itself be formed of leather or other soft material, the skirt IE could depend directly therefrom without having to cover the edges thereof, since those edges would already, because of the nature of the material of which the top portion 6 is composed, be sufficiently soft so as to achieve the objectives of this invention.

The skirt portion l0 depends from only so much of the top portion 6 as to permit the guard to be placed upon the corners of the slabs: 2, To that end, the top portion 6 is here specifically disclosed in the form of av right angle isosceles triangle, the right angle being at the corner. 8 and the hypotenuse ll having no skirt In depending therefrom so that as one views the corner guard from the. front, as. in Fig. 21, the. skirt l0 and the top: portion. 6. define a pocketopen at the bottom and. freely accessible through the open side .of which the hypotenuse I4 is the top.

In; order to. secure the corner guard of Figs. 1 through 4 to the corners of the slabs 2, a. secur ing element t6, hereshown in the form of. a rubber suction cup, depends from the topportion 6, and a handle l8 projects. upwardly there.- from so that the. corner guard may be conveniently manipulated and positioned. As specifi-' cally disclosed, the handle. 18 and the rubber suction cup l6 may be integrally formed and the handle I8 may be passable through andsecured within a suitable aperture: 20 in the top portion 6.

The modification disclosed in Figs. 5 through; 7 is somewhat? simpler of construction than that of. Figs. 1 through 4 since its dispenses with the suction cup IG-andhandl'e l8. Thismodifb cation is particularly adapted' for use with a. superposed pile of sheets or slabs 2. In this modification, the top portion 6 must be of relatively rigid material and the uncovered edge I4 isbevelled (see'Fi'g. 7 so that it maybeslid: between-two of the sheets or slabs 2 (see Fig. 5') and thus beretained in position by the weight of the sheetsorslabs- 2 thereabove.

The manner of use of the corner guards of the present invention will. in the mainbe fully apparent from the abovedescription: Once they are placed: in position on the corners" of the sheets orslabs 2'; the corners 8'o f' the" cornerguard will extend out beyond the corners of thesheets or slabs 2* and hence the corner guard 8* and not the sh'eets'or'slabs ZWill be broughtinto" contact with adjacent personnel or property. Since the exposed edges of the corner. guard? are. soft and since the fiexibfe. skirt. l'lI depend downwardly so as to cover the corners of" all. or most of the sheets. 2', injury or damage. caused by coming in contact. with those corners willbe relatively nil. The embodiment of Figs. 1 through 4 may be easily manipulatedandplaced by reason of the handle I8.- and: may therefore beattached: to and. removed from the. corners.

of objects. from which protection.- desired: at. will. The embodiment; of. Figs. 5: through 7? serves a. similar: purpose. but is; particularly. adapted. for use with-superposed sh'eetstou slabs.

The embodiment of: Figs; 1; through. 4 is: use'ables not only to :protectexternal objects. from con-- tact. with the; rawv or; rough: corners of: the: ob jects towhicm the guards are":applied butt-isialso uite.-etrective;- if: the guards are secured to: n 5

'4 ished corners, to protect those corners from undesired contact with other objects.

While my invention has here been disclosed with particular reference to right angle corners, it will be apparent that the corner guard of the present invention may be modified in shape so as to conform to any type of corner desired. It will also be apparent that the specific construction may be varied within wide limits both as to materials used, size and shape of the component parts, and so forth, all Within the spirit of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A two-piece corner guard comprising a rigid selfesustaining top plate having a corner defined by two edges, a soft flexible skirt secured to said top plate and depending from and covering said edges and said corner, and a securing element depending from said top plate and removably attachable to the top surface of an object, said guard being securable to an exposed corner of said object so that the corner of said guard extends out beyond the corner of said object, whereby the corner of said object is protected.

2. A corner guard comprising a top plate having a corner defined by two edges, a soft flexible skirt secured to said top plate and depending from and covering said edges and said corner, and a rubber suction cup dependingv from said top plate and removably attachable to thetop surface of an object, said guard: being securable to an exposed corner of saidobject so that the corner of said guard extends. out beyond the corner of said object, whereby the corner of said object is protected.

3. A corner guard comprising atop plate having a corner defined by two" edges, a soft flexible skirt secured to said top plate and depending from and covering said edges and. said corner, a rubber suction cup depending from said top plate and removably attachable tothe top surface of an object, and ahandle projecting upwardly from said topplate for'manipulating said guard, said guard being securable to an exposed corner of said object so that the corner of said guard extends out beyond the corner of said object, whereby the corner" of said object is protect'ed.

4. A corner guard comprising a top plate in the form of an isoscel'es'right triangle, the right angle corner of said top plate being defined by two meeting edges, 2. soft flexible skirt secured to said top plate and depending from and covering-said meeting edges and said corner; a' rubber suction cup depending from said top" plate and removably' attachable to the topsurface of an object, and a handle projecting. upwardly from said top plate for manipulatingsaid guard, said guard being securable' to an exposed corner of said. object so that the corner of said guard extends out beyond the corner of said object, whereby the corner. of said object is protected.

SAMUEL] REFERENCES: CITED The following referencesare of record in the file" of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

